2007 in reissues/compilations/live albums

Neil Young- Live at Massey Hall 1971


Neil Young, like a lot of great artists, has taken a lot of career detours in his time, some bad and some good (others downright terrible, but that's another matter for discussion), but always intriguing. While it's great to hear him rock out with Crazy Horse, some of the songs lend themselves to a more simple arrangement, and this live album, sandwiched between the behemoth After The Goldrush and Harvest LPs, is in that very vein of intimacy. Recorded at Toronto's Massey Hall, it's quite apparent that Neil felt right at home singing in front of his fellow Canucks, and the audience response to these mostly new songs was rapt. Hearing "Old Man" in its incarnation here is just as good as the Harvest version, and "Cowgirl In The Sand," "Tell Me Why," "Don't Let It Bring You Down" and "See The Sky About To Rain" are other highlights. There's just something so comforting about hearing that whiny voice sing these beauteous songs.
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Leonard Cohen

Songs of Leonard Cohen
Songs From A Room
Songs of Love and Hate
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Leonard Cohen's first three albums, reissued this year by Columbia/Legacy, have a timeless, unshakable quality about them that quickly established him as one of the premier songwriters of the 60s and 70s, although he was far exceeded by other contemporaries like Bob Dylan in terms of record sales and critical reception. While Cohen's voice has been a cigarette-stained "come hither" baritone for the past 30 years or so, (with a lot of his recent records being a mixed bag) these first three records are the devil's business. Songs of Leonard Cohen and Songs From A Room are the best of the three, with the former's hushed, beautiful melodies and dark lyrics standing in contrast to the latter's numerous biblical references ("Story of Isaac"), allusions to Vietnam ("The Butcher") and comparitively upbeat mood. Songs of Love and Hate is plenty dour, but still has some strong songs like the foreboding "Avalanche" and "Famous Blue Raincoat." All albums include previously unreleased tracks, the first with the unheard tracks "Store Room" and "Blessed Is The Memory", the second with alternate versions of "Bird On The Wire" and "You Know Who I Am" and the third with a different take of "Dress Rehearsal Rag."
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Elliott Smith- New Moon


You just never know with these posthumous releases. Thankfully, since Elliott Smith's untimely passing in 2003, those in charge of his music and preserving his legacy have shown a considerable amount of restraint in what they've decided to release. This is the second album since his death, the first being the uneven From a Basement on the Hill, and while there are more than a few throwaway tracks, the recordings from this particular time, 1994-1997, show him at his most creative and intimate. Smith was constantly saddled with the depressing sad sack tag, and while a good number of the songs on Moon display a tragic beauty, there are others that show him in a different light, like the playful "New Monkey." The strongest song of the set, "High Times," builds to an emotional peak that threatens to completely collapse on itself, and his cover of Big Star's "Thirteen" adds a layer of sadness not heard in the original. It's also interesting to hear works in progress, such as an early version of "Miss Misery" and "Pretty Mary K," wholly different from what ended up on Figure 8. Just as renowned patriot and car-sellin' madman John Cougar Mellencamp said, Smith made it hurt so good.
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The Traveling Wilburys- The Traveling Wilburys Collection

What do you get when you cross an ELO sheepdog, a cantankerous folkie, a gentle Beatle, a velvet crooner and Chryssie Hynde's long lost brother? A lot of body and facial hair. The Traveling Wilburys Collection is long overdue, especially considering that the main albums in question, Volume 1 (with Roy Orbison) and Volume 3(post-Orbison) have been out of print for years. It's good to finally see it all in one place, and the Wilburys were a rare supergroup that didn't suck. Part of the reason these songs still sound so fresh is because you could tell that these guys, despite being mammoth rock icons, were just having a hell of a time and not taking things seriously at all. The first record benefits tremendously from having Roy Orbison, (who died shortly after its release), but the second album is just as fun, what with the "Wilbury Twist" and Jeff Lynne's production also in full focus. The Collection includes a DVD with a making-of documentary and all of the band's videos, and each of the two records come with bonus tracks, including a cover of Del Shannon's "Runaway." If you're a fan of any of the respective Wilburys--that is, Lucky-Boo (Bob Dylan), Otis-Clayton (Jeff Lynne), Charlie T. Jr./Muddy (Tom Petty), Nelson-Spike (George Harrison), or Lefty (Orbison), it probably won't take you too long to realize that you need to own it.